Chapter Seven - Kidnapped

Constance and d'Artagnan (with Athos, Porthos and Aramis). This is set in Series Three somewhere.

D'Artagnan ran hard, he knew he had to get help, he could not deal with the situation on his own. Constance's life and the Queen's reputation depended on it. He hurtled into the garrison skidding to a stop in front of a surprised Aramis who recovered his wits just in time to grab the panting man.

Pushing d'Artagnan to arm's length Aramis looked at him quizzically.

'...Constance...taken…' d'Artagnan managed to say, wishing he could calm his breathing enough to tell his friends what he needed to.

He saw Aramis glance across to Porthos and Athos who had walked over, obviously worried about d'Artagnan. The young man made a concerted effort to slow his breathing and regain his composure.

Aramis steered him towards the bench and sat him down, crouching in front of him and checking him for injuries.

'What happened to you? Are you injured?' asked Aramis.

D'Artagnan pushed Aramis' hands away. He was bruised from the fight but not injured. He took a few breaths before relaying to his brothers what had happened.

'I was walking with Constance towards the Palace to visit the Queen. We were only a couple of streets away...we'd stopped for a second…'

He looked at the three Musketeers in front of him, Aramis gave him a knowing smile, Porthos chuckled and Athos shook his head slightly, they knew why d'Artagnan and Constance had stopped for a second.

'I was...distracted for a moment. Four men grabbed us. I was pinned to a wall...I'm sorry I couldn't…'

'Don't worry about that at the moment,' said Aramis calmly.

'They picked Constance up, she fought them, scratched one of them across the face, he slapped her.'

D'Artagnan shuddered as the memory. He had felt so helpless as the man who slapped Constance making the most of her momentary stunned distraction to throw her over his shoulder and start to walk towards a dusty carriage. The men who had d'Artagnan pinned to the wall punched him in the back a couple of times, before pulling him from the wall and hitting him hard across the face. As they let him go, he slumped to the ground.

'All I could do was watch as they took her,' d'Artagnan said quietly after relating what had happened.

'What do they want with Constance?' asked Porthos.

D'Artagnan reached into his doublet and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper, he handed it to Athos who unfolded it and read it.

'What does it say?' asked Aramis.

'They want money for Constance's safe return and to stop them from spreading some rumour about the Queen,' said d'Artagnan glancing at Aramis for a second before looking away.

Aramis straightened up, 'what kind of rumours?'

'I don't know, they didn't say,' replied d'Artagnan knowing what Aramis was alluding to.

They did not want any more trouble regarding Aramis' illicit liaison with the Queen.

'It says they want jewels to secure their silence and Constance's release. There is an address and time for the handover,' said Athos who had read the note twice as his brothers talked.

'Where are we going to get jewels from?' asked Porthos.

'I can think of someone who will help us,' said Aramis.

MMMM

Aramis now had a habit of keeping to the back of the group whenever they visited the Palace. He may have been cleared of the charges against him, but it was not worth the risk to have his presence noticed too much. He steered clear of the King as much as possible and was careful not to be seen with or near the Queen very often. But in this instance, where one of the Queen's friends was in danger and her reputation was on the line he was prepared to take the risk.

They had managed to gain entry to her apartments with relative ease but were now stuck trying to get an audience. The lady in waiting was insisting that her Majesty was not available. Aramis rolled his eyes. He was about to step forward and talk to the woman himself when a door beyond the lady in waiting opened.

The Queen stood in the doorway, she looked at the concerned faces of the King's Musketeers. She made eye contact with Aramis, he knew he must have conveyed something to her as she nodded imperceptibly before she spoke.

'Clare,' she said, causing the lady to turn to her, 'if these Musketeers need to see me they shall.'

'But Majesty...' began the lady in waiting.

'I will be perfectly safe with them, you may wait in my sitting room with the other ladies I will join you shortly.'

Clare bowed before turning, she eyed each of them suspiciously as she walked passed, disappearing into the next room.

The Queen stood aside from the door. The Musketeers filed passed her, each bowing respectfully as they did so. Aramis could not help lingering with his eye contact with her as he entered the impressive room.

'D'Artagnan,' said the Queen, 'you appear to have been attacked, are you injured?'

'No, Ma'am,' replied the young Musketeer, 'but that is why we are here.'

Athos took a step forward and related what had happened, allowing d'Artagnan to fill in gaps where necessary.

'Do you think Constance was hurt when they took her?'

Aramis admired her for worrying about others before herself. Any further tarnish to her reputation could leave her alone within her already small circle of friends. He looked down, not wishing for her to see the worry that he was carrying on his face. When she stepped up to him he looked up again, holding her gaze.

'My reputation is insignificant, there are more people who despise me than love me. Another rumour will not harm me further,' she said with a smile. 'I am far more concerned with Constance's welfare.'

Aramis glanced at Athos who indicated that he should take a step back, away from the Queen. The Queen looked around and saw Athos' make the move.

'There is no one here to see us together, Athos, I think Aramis...and I, are safe,' she smiled as she spoke before turning from them and walking to a desk by one of the windows, she opened a drawer and pulled out a box, which she opened. She searched through the box for a few seconds before pulling out a jewelled necklace. She held it up to the light and looked at it for a few seconds watching the sunlight catch the stones.

'These are valuable, but I cannot imagine Louis will know I have them...he will not demand that I wear them at any point,' she handed the necklace to d'Artagnan who nodded.

'Use them to get Constance back...she is what matters. I hate to think that she has been used in some misguided attempt to discredit me...when I have little left to lose as far as my reputation is concerned.'

She was struggling to hide her worry for her friend, Aramis could not help himself he took a few steps forward, 'we will rescue Constance, and ensure that these men do not spread any rumours about you.'

The Queen looked at him and after a glance at Athos, reached forward and took his hands in hers, 'I know you will...but Constance is more important.'

'Thank you, Majesty,' said d'Artagnan.

'And try not to get yourselves hurt in the process,' she said looking at each of them in turn. 'Remember that Constance is a capable woman, she may not accept that she is in as much danger as she probably is.'

MMMM

Constance was angry. Constance was worried. Constance was angry and worried. Angry that these men thought it was alright to kidnap people off the streets and worried about what had happened to her husband. She had caught a glimpse of the men who had pushed him into the wall beating him as she struggled against her own attacker. They had bundled her into the dirty carriage very roughly, but she had managed to sit up enough to see d'Artagnan collapse to the ground as the two men who had been beating him let him go and ran to grab onto the back of the carriage.

She had given the men a stern talking to, which had earned her another slap. Her cheek now stung, and she suspected she would be bruised. The man that had slapped her the first time had held back a little, she was sure of it, but the second man had not. He had hit her hard enough to make her stumble a few steps, she had reached up and touched her cheek, shocked at the treatment. The first man had grabbed her and pulled her arms behind her and snapped a set of manacles around her wrists.

The men had told her if she behaved they would give her some water and allow her to sit in a chair. She had told the men exactly what she thought of them.

She had no idea what they wanted from her. But she suspected that she was being used as a means to an end. The fact that d'Artagnan had not been killed when they had taken her made her believe she was being held to ransom. But who would pay for her release? D'Artagnan had no money, their friends did not have much. She doubted the men who had taken her knew that Athos and Porthos were of noble stock and might have money. Who would the men demand money from?

After she had spent some time berating the men one of them had grabbed a rag and gagged her. She had mumbled curses at the man as he tied the gag tightly around her head. The man had pushed her back a few paces and forced her to sit down, leaning against the dirty stone wall. Her dress was torn and filthy from her treatment. She spent some time glaring at the men before they lost interest and started playing cards at a small table a few yards from her. They barely looked at her.

Constance was more than happy to be ignored. When she had felt her cheek after the second slap she had slipped one of her earrings out and concealed it in her palm just before she was restrained.

She thought back to one of the calm quiet times she had enjoyed at the garrison. Nothing of significance was happening, the cadets had been taken off by d'Artagnan and Aramis on a training exercise, Athos had disappeared, probably to see Sylvie, although he would have not admitted to it, and Porthos was sat cleaning weapons at the table in the yard.

Constance had settled next to him and started to clean a couple of the guns. They had struck up a conversation about Porthos' younger days, he had told her about an incident when he had been grabbed by some Red Guard and accused of stealing. He had been manacled and was being forced to walk to the Chatelet. Porthos had been fortunate as his friends caused a distraction, during which he had picked the lock on the manacles and managed to disappear into the crowd of Parisians who had stopped to watch the fight.

Porthos had told her it was a useful ability, being able to pick a lock had helped him and his brothers out several times. She had asked him to show her. They had spent a happy afternoon, sat in the sun, she had enjoyed watching Porthos' enthusiasm for his subject. By the time the cadets had returned she had learnt to pick locks on manacles and was well on her way to becoming accomplished at door locks as well.

Constance smiled to herself as she worked on the simple lock that was being used to hold her prisoner. She was not sure what she would do once she had undone the manacles. She knew she was no match for the four men across from her, she would have to pick her moment carefully, but if she was not restrained she would be more useful in any rescue.

And she was sure there would be a rescue.

MMMM

Porthos watched both d'Artagnan and Aramis carefully. D'Artagnan was worried about his wife and might not think before he acted, and Aramis was worried about the Queen, and likewise might not think. The situation was not ideal. They had dealt with a few kidnappings over the years but never one that affected their little group quite as much.

They reached the rendezvous without incident. A quiet road between two storage buildings, wide enough for a carriage. The carriage in question really had seen better days. D'Artagnan had not been able to describe it very well, he had only said that it was old and dirty. The shabby curtains over the windows told Porthos that the carriage had probably been owned by a nobleman. The insignia on the door had worn away over the years. The carriage had not been maintained well.

Three men were stood in front of the carriage spread across the road, their weapons drawn, but held loosely at their sides. The Musketeers walked forwards stopping a few yards from the men.

'What 'ave you got for us then?' said one of the men with a sneer.

'We need to see the woman you have taken first,' said Athos.

D'Artagnan was ready to leap forward, Porthos could feel the anger coming from the younger man.

The man who appeared to be in charge turned and nodded in the direction of the carriage. The door was pushed open and a man backed out, he was struggling to stay upright as his burden was not cooperating. Constance was manhandled onto the street. He arms were restrained, Porthos could not work out what with, and she was gagged. A couple of bruises marked her face, her hair was unkempt. Her dress which rarely had a mark on it was dirty and ripped in a couple of places. Porthos guessed she had not been a compliant captive, he hid a grin. Constance was formidable.

Once the man had managed to get her under control he turned her to face the Musketeers. Her eyes going wide when she saw d'Artagnan who had taken a step forward. Aramis had wrapped his hand around the Musketeer's wrist to stop his movement. D'Artagnan nodded.

Porthos' attention returned to the men and Constance, he realised the Constance was staring at him rather than d'Artagnan. He furrowed his brow realising the young woman was trying to tell him something, but he could not work out what.

'She's fine,' said the ringleader, 'we'll be glad to get shot of her. What 'ave you got?'

Athos nodded to d'Artagnan who was finally allowed to walk forward, he was holding a small silk bag. He kept his hands out, away from his weapons as he walked, stopping a few feet from the man. He slowly tipped the contents of the bag into his gloved hand, the jewels glistening in the early evening sun. He held his hand forward so that the men could see the jewelled necklace properly. The man nodded appreciatively.

Porthos was aware of d'Artagnan's movements but he concentrated on Constance who was slightly pulling her shoulders forward and backwards. A thought occurred to Porthos as he looked at Constance and realised she was only wearing one earring. He subtly moved his hands forward, put his wrists together then pulled them apart. All the kidnappers were focused on d'Artagnan and the jewels. Constance nodded as Porthos repeated the move. Porthos realised that Constance was not actually restrained. She could play a part in her own rescue.

'Constance ain't tied up,' said Porthos quietly to Aramis and Athos.

Both men nodded but otherwise did not react.

'D'Artagnan won't know,' said Aramis.

'He will work it out soon enough,' remarked Athos.

'Ready?' asked Porthos.

Both men nodded again.

'Now!'

MMMM

Constance took her cue, slipping her hand from the manacle and swinging it around. The loose end smacking into the man who had hold of her. The rusty metal cut across the man's face, he yelped in pain, letting her go and reaching up to his face. Constance grabbed the man by the shoulders and pulled him downwards as she brought her knee up. With a satisfying crunch, Constance was fairly sure she had broken the man's nose. She pushed him away, he stumbled back knocking into the carriage before falling to his knees.

She looked up, as she pulled the gag from her mouth, the sight that greeted her was not as she had expected it. She had hoped to find her husband and her three friends fighting the men who had taken her captive. What she saw was her friends fighting and d'Artagnan clutching at his arm as he started to sink to his knees, blood seeping through his fingers. D'Artagnan had been shot in the instance that the fight had started. Constance guessed that as the only one of them that did not know they were about to enter into an affray he had been unprepared, getting caught by a ball fired by one of the three enemy combatants.

With little regard for her own safety, Constance rushed forward and grabbed d'Artagnan before he collapsed, forcing him away from the fighting men.

'What…?'

'I got free.'

'How…?'

'Porthos taught me to pick locks.'

'When…?'

'A few weeks ago, you weren't there. Now shut up and let me see to this.'

D'Artagnan had been about to speak again but closed his mouth. Constance smiled at him, she leaned forward and kissed him quickly.

'Thank you for rescuing me.'

MMMM

D'Artagnan, who knew he was a bit unsteady on his feet had insisted on accompanying his wife and his brothers back to the Palace. They knew the Queen would be anxious for news of Constance's release. Aramis had stated that Constance's ministrations to his injury were perfectly adequate for a short while, but they would need to deal with it properly as soon as they practically could.

After Constance had dragged him to the side of the street and forced him to sit down he had been vaguely aware of the others dealing with the gang. Constance had ripped her already torn dress to make a temporary bandage.

D'Artagnan had tried to check Constance for injuries but she had told him firmly to stop, and that he had come off worse. He knew when to admit defeat with his wife. As far as he could tell she had only suffered a few bruises and grazes during her ordeal.

Porthos had slipped his arm around d'Artagnan's waist when he had stumbled slightly. Both Constance and Aramis had given him a look.

'Are you ganging up on me?' d'Artagnan asked.

'Yes,' replied Constance, 'you should go with Aramis back to the garrison.'

'I'm not leaving you, when I've just got you back.'

'Men,' she said with exasperation, before leading them through the Palace towards the Queen's rooms.

The Musketeers followed the quickly disappearing woman.

'We should have left one of them alive,' said Porthos, 'they could have warned the other local villains that she's not to be messed with.'

The End.